T Clarke alleges £2.8m employee theft

T Clarke is investigating “financial irregularities” in the accounting function of one of its subsidiaries, DG Robson Mechanical Services.

The building services group said that “from initial investigations, it would appear that funds in excess of £2.8m have been misappropriated by an employee over a number of years”.

T Clarke said it has “taken appropriate action”, including the appointment of professional advisers to assist with its investigations and recover the stolen funds.

It added: “Investigations indicate that the incident is limited to DG Robston and does not impact the wider T Clarke Group. Our findings to date suggest that if anything the group's historic trading results and balance sheet net worth may be understated to the extent that any of the misappropriated funds are recoverable.

“The board believes that any necessary accounting adjustments in the current period are unlikely to have a material adverse effect on the group's results taken as a whole and, overall, the group remains on track to meet market expectations for the year.”

As part of a planned reorganisation, the operations of DG Robson are being transferred to T Clarke’s main London M&E business where “additional control measures” are in place. T Clarke said this process will now be accelerated and DG Robson's operations will be fully integrated into the London M&E business by the end of this year.